Chapter 28- Cog of Destiny

[Smith]

This doesn't look like much but anybody that has ever played Fire Emblem knows much this level sucks. That has nothing to do with the team, but seriously, those fucking reinforements never die, you have to plug them all up before you can even fight the boss, who by the way totally sucks. And if your Eliwood isn't high leveled, have fun trying to talk to Vaida! Just an overall no-win scenario and a bloodbath on both accounts. Alright name for a RMT.
Introduction
Hello everybody, welcome to another team of mine, but my first non-OU team. You see, yesterday I was getting sort of bored of OU and wanted to try another tier. I almost hopped on CAP to play some NU, but then I remembered that in a couple of weeks 5th gen was going to start and the tier wouldn't even be the same. So I thought, what tier is going to change the least? And Ubers seemed the right choice. I mean, how many significant legendaries are they going to add? Yes, it'll still be different, but I'll be able to transition.

Something you have to understand about me is that, well I had tried Ubers a couple of times in the past and never liked it, but I think that was because I was running stall in a tier I didn't even properly understand. So I wasn't expected much success when I hopped on the ladder with this hastily made team.

I peaked at 1440.

Ok, big deal. Another thing you have to understand about me is that I am a terrible ladderer. I've beaten some good players as randoms on the ladder, but I am very inconsistent. The best I've ever done in OU was around ~1350. That was a tier I'd played for the last year. And in a tier I had played for less than 24 hours, I had set a personal record.

I think what I like about Ubers is that sacrificing things is a lot easier on you. In OU I have a tendency to sack things for the revenge kill when they really didn't have to die, and I generally place less value on every Pokemon and hope that I can end it in a big sweep finale. Well that doesn't always work out but in Ubers, that seems to be the name of the game. My only regret is that it took me this long to find the perfectly fucked-up metagame for my playing style to thrive.

Onto the team itself. The team building process is pretty non-linear and I've already bored you with enough irrelevant details. The main strategy is to get off a Groudon or Mewtwo sweep. Note that I am still very, very green and all advice is very appreciated.

The Part You Actually Care About

Forretress @ Leftovers
252 HP / 252 SpDef / 4 Def
Careful (+SpDef, -SpAtk)
-Stealth Rock
-Spikes
-Payback
-Rapid Spin

The funny part about this guy is that he is the exact same lead I've used in OU but with far less success. When it came to choosing a lead, I know Rock Polish Groudon was a big fan of spikes and I wanted somebody that could do that. However I also fucking hate deoxys leads and, similarly to my obsession of beating Machamp in OU, had to have a lead that ate his lunch. And so this guy is born, and honestly he's not bad. Being my sole dragon resist is pretty important and he walls physical shit even wiithout much investment. Later in the match he makes excellent fodder (not joking with you about that part, really having a more disposable member of the team is nice). After the hazards are laid, he's useless and he dies.

Lead Matchup, red means I must switch

Dexoys forms are dispatched by Payback + Rapid Spin till they die, with some hazards thrown in if taunt wears off and I feel ballsy.

Kyogre requires an instant switch to Palkia for Thunder/Spacial Rend if I feel ballsy.

Dialga is pretty annoying and I usually go to Kyogre and just fire off an Ice Beam

Darkrai means I go Dialga, catch the sleep, and switch back to Forry and keep setting up hazards. If they start plotting I usually have to sack Forry and revenge with Palkia.

I never ran into any of these but they pose no threat so I just set up hazards. Pray the aren't a passer.

Set up hazards on him, pretty easy lead to counter if by some miracle something goes wrong.

Forry match ups are pretty funny, we usually have a hazards + spin war until one of us runs out of patience.

Rayquaza leads can go die, usually go to Kyogre and Ice Beam. Usually kills him though. >:/

Giratina-O means a switch to Kyogre for an Ice Beam.

Dialga @ Leftovers
252 HP / 252 SpDef / 4 Def
Careful (+SpDef, -SpAtk)
-Rest
-Sleep Talk
-Bulk Up
-Outrage

I like how him and Forry have the same spread + item. =p But anyways, this guy is pretty cool glue for the team. His wicked defenses mean he can take a lot of punishment and strike back with a powerful Outrage. Surprisingly though I don't get to Bulk Up as much as I'd like but it works really well against stall once I kill the Forry/Skarm. He's basically the Crocune of Ubers, and did I mention he's really hard to kill? He's a go-to guy and gets me out of a lot of tight situations. He's also a RestTalker, which is really important because Darkrai is a dick and those thunder waving Kyogres are dicks, paralyzing my revenge killer and what have you.

Palkia @ Choice Scarf
252 Spe / 252 SpAtk / 4 HP
Hasty (+Spe, -Def)
-Spacial Rend
-Thunder
-Surf
-Outrage

Oh man this guy is so important. MVP by far. Basically he revenges fucking everything and I probably rely on him for far too much. He's my main stop to Kyogre as well, because sometimes I don't want Darkrai switching into full power water spouts. :( He's even managed a couple of late games sweeps. He requires some prediction to utilize properly, but when it works it's just fantastic (I.E. spacial rending Giritina-O). He's unfortunately also my main stop to Rayquaza which has screwed me on several occasions, due to SD sets raping him. I also had a dd variety outspeed him once, and I'm not sure how due to the difference in speed.

Kyogre @ Choice Specs
252 SpAtk / 252 Spe / 4 HP
Timid (+Spe, -Atk)
-Water Spout
-Surf
-Ice Beam
-Thunder

I feel sorry for all of you that run Latias, because this guy just spays her. Specs Kyogre is stupidly powerful and with all the special bulk can muscle it's way through a lot of shit. This guy used to be a scarfer and Palkia the specs one, but I like this set up much more because of how much of a battering ram this dude is. Spikes + Specs Water Spouts flying around is all the support you should need for any sweeper. Kyogre also outspeeds things like Groudon and Manaphy and kills them before they inflict too much damage, which is nice- if something is slow, this dude revenges it much more effectively because everything dies. Similarly to Palkia, Kyogre has to predict his way around things, but again it works beautifully if I can 2hko Latias or something.

Groudon @ Life Orb
112 HP / 252 Atk / 8 Def / 136 Spe
Jolly (+Spe, -SpAtk)
-Rock Polish
-Earthquake
-Stone Edge
-Dragon Claw

Main sweeper #1! He's just a blast to use and nobody seems to be ready for him after stealth and spikes have murdered or weakened his "counters". His physical bulk comes in handy as well for stopping things like Outraging Palkia/Dialga. But that's not why he's here, he's just a hard sweeper to stop, and I don't think he has any real counters per say because he just hits everything really hard, which is a really nice trait because with the right support, he can get me out of anything. The dual weathers are pretty fun to mess around with, switching this guy into Kingdra or Kyogre into Jumpluff or something. I guess in summary he's fast, powerful and bulky, what the hell else do you want?

Old Set

Mewtwo @ Life Orb
252 SpAtk / 252 Spe / 4 HP
Timid (+Spe, -SpAtk)
-Calm Mind
-Aura Sphere
-Thunder
-Ice Beam

The cleaner-upper, this guy's pretty cool. I don't run Sub + CM or Taunt because I prefer the raw power LO brings to the table, most of the time I don't even get a chance to CM but if I do, it just is ridiculous. I somehow end up sending him out a lot earlier than I would like to most of the time, but even then he puts big dents for big daddy Groudon to exploit. I think that the main reason I like him is that he doesn't require set up to be successful. I hate to pussy out on the description of the last Pokemon but sorry, he's pretty basic.

Giritina-O @ Platinum Orb
248 HP / 64 SpAtk / 196 Spe
Naive (+Spe, -SpDef)
-Draco Meteor
-Outrage
-Shadow Sneak
-Hidden Power (Fire)

Okay replacement 'mon, I'm diggin this guy a lot more. Whereas Mewtwo was just sweeper filler, G-O serves some very important purposes. First and foremost, he is my spin blocker, which I've been told is hugely important although I haven't run into any spinners. Nonetheless it's nice. Secondly, whereas my old team lacked a ground resist, finally I have one. And thirdly, this guy gives stall a really hard time, which I appreciate as sometimes it can be vicious, especially before when I didn't have a spin blocker. Beyond that, he provides some priority, which is always useful for picking off things at low health. Overall just a handy Pokemon to have around.
Conclusion
That's the team, I guess. I'm sorry the descriptions aren't longer but this is my first Ubers team and I had a much more "Goodstuffs" state of mind when I came up with this. This team has really big problems with Rayquaza if you're looking for anything, but again all advice helps.

~finis​

 

[Scimjara]

Excellent team and congrats on your personal best record. Well one thing is if you do use Forretress or any spike stacker in Ubers you should also use a Spin Blocker preferably Giritina-O. So that opposing Forretress dont ruin your work by easily Rapid Spinning your layers away. Swords Dance Rayquaza is a huge threat for your team seeing that after a Swords Dance Outrage and Extreme Speed easily rips holes on your team. Since +2 ES ko's CS Palkia the only pokemon who is faster then Rayquaza who you consider your main stop against Rayquaza.

I would suggest you use Choice Scarf Dialga as your scarfer to safely revenge kill Rayquaza since it resists Extreme Speed. So Rayquaza wouldn't get away sweeping your team with priority and stab. This also revenge kills other Swords Dancers such as SD Lucario in Ubers.

You should use Spin Blocker Giritina-O instead of Choice Scarf Palkia.Like I said when using Forretress or any other Spike Stacker you are literally confined to using a Spin Blocker. Since Dialga would be your designated Scarfer there is no point in using Palkia. Giritina-O is useful since your team has no priority move users since Shadow Sneak helps revenge kill weakened pokemon such as Mewto, Latias, and Latios.

Dialga @ Choice Scarf | Pressure
Timid | 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Draco Meteor | Thunder | Aura Sphere | Outrage

Giritina - O @ Platinum Orb | Pressure
Naive | 248 Atk / 64 SpA / 196 Spe
Draco Meteor | Outrage | Hidden Power Fire | Shadow Sneak
---
Good Luck

 

[Smith]

Thank you immensely, I'll implement these changes, although I can't say I've had issues with having my hazards spun away but I would appreciate a better stop to Rayquaza.

 

[Iconic]

I don't understand why you would even consider getting rid of your Kyogre counter. Kyogre is on more than 50% of the teams on the ladder, and without Palkia, everything on your team is 2HKOed at best by Specs Kyogre. Scarf variants are 'checked' by Dialga, but literally anything else will completely ravage your team. I mean, there have been several successful teams without a Kyogre counter, but if you can afford to pack one, you almost always should. While I agree having Giratina-O would be beneficial for you, there's a much better way to approach this; instead of ditching Palkia for Giratina-O, get rid of Mewtwo. Right now, Mewtwo is sort of the odd man out in the sense that it has no purpose for your team other than to try and kill stuff at the end of games. Theoretically, you should be cleaning with BU Dialga, since it's probably the scariest Pokemon in Ubers lategame when its counters are gone or weakened. By switching Mewtwo for Giratina-O, you gain a mixed wallbreaker, a spinblocker and a reliable switch in for opposing Groudon without losing anything vital to your team.

When using Forretress, you should almost always have Toxic Spikes on it. Without Toxic Spikes, especially on an offensive team like yours, you're almost always better off using Deoxys-S. Believe it or not, Toxic Spikes are arguably the most deadly in Ubers, where most Pokemon (think Mewtwo, Darkrai, Palkia, Kyogre, etc) are grounded and absolutely hate the residual damage. As such, you should definitely try out Toxic Spikes over Stealth Rock on Forretress, since it can help weaken the likes of Groudon and Garchomp to let Dialga clean up late game. Losing Stealth Rock on Forretress leads me to another recommendation for you to consider: changing your Groudon to the bulky Impish version. By doing so, you'd regain your Stealth Rock user while also giving you one of the very best Rayquaza counters in the game, a Pokemon which you've appropriately noted as being threatening to your team.

Groudon @ Leftovers
252 HP / 220 Def / 36 Spe
Impish (+Def, -SpA)
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Thunder Wave / Swords Dance

With an Impish nature and so many defensive EVs, you'll survive absolutely anything a physical Rayquaza can throw at you, including a +2 Waterfall (which is the strongest attack you'll probably see). A lot of people underestimate Groudon's attacking prowess when it's Impish, but 336 Attack is nothing to scoff at. Earthquake is obligatory STAB, while Stone Edge lets you hit Rayquaza and Ho-oh in one attack, especially since the latter gives you a bit of trouble if you lose Kyogre prematurely. Thunder Wave can cripple common switch ins like Latias as well as helping your overall slow team, but Swords Dance will give you insurance against Bulk Up Dialga while also allowing you to sweep in a pinch. Anyways, pretty cool team, and make sure to keep playing Ubers (since it's obviously the best metagame)!

 

[Smith]

Thanks for the rate, I had actually been looking to replace Mewtwo so that sounds great, and yeah Kyogre has been pretty worrying so I guess I'll return to the scarf palkia / bu dialga set-up. Toxic Spikes on Forry sounds fun but I'm a bit worried about losing my main sweeper Groudon, nonetheless I'll test it. Sorry for not updating guys, I'll get around to it probably tomorrow.

EDIT: Maybe it's because I'm a noob, but losing RP Groudon really hurt the team and, although I really liked the Toxic Spikes, I'll be keeping Stealth Rock on Forry and RP on Groudon.